Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for controlling an active air flap. More particularly, it relates to an apparatus and a method for controlling an active air flap, through which cooling performance and aerodynamic performance can be improved and fuel ratio can be maximized by reflecting information of a road.
Description of Related Art
In general, various heat exchangers such as a radiator, an intercooler, an evaporator, and condensers as well as components for driving an engine are provided in an engine room of the vehicle.
Heat exchange media circulate in the heat exchangers to be cooled or heat-dissipated as the heat exchange media in the heat exchangers exchange heat with exterior air.
Accordingly, exterior air should be smoothly supplied into an engine room to stably operate various heat exchangers in the engine room of the vehicle.
However, if a large amount of exterior air is introduced at a high speed when the vehicle travels at a high speed, air resistance becomes larger and fuel ratio of the vehicle deteriorates.
In order to solve the problems, an active air flap (AAF) apparatus which increases an amount of air introduced into an engine room by increasing an opening angle when the vehicle travels at a low speed and decreases an amount of introduced air by decreasing the opening angle when the vehicle travels at a high speed, thereby helping improve aerodynamic performance and enhance fuel ratio is being applied.
Such an active air flap is installed at a location of a vehicle where exterior air is introduced, and actively controls an amount of introduced air by varying an opening degree of an air inlet passage according to a driving condition of the vehicle.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the active air flap apparatus includes a duct 2 coupled to and installed in a front end module 1 of a vehicle, for guiding flow of air, a housing 3 coupled to and installed in the duct 2, an actuator 4 fixedly installed in the housing 3, and an air flap 6 rotatably installed in the housing 3 and rotated by power of the actuator 4, for opening and closing an air inlet passage 5 of the housing 3.
Here, the actuator 4 includes a motor and a plurality of gear members (reduction gears), and rotary shafts 7 which are rotatable with respect to the housing 3 are installed at opposite sides of the actuator 4.
The gear members are connected to the rotary shafts such that power may be transmitted to the rotary shafts and air flaps 6 are integrally coupled to the rotary shafts 7 such that if the actuator 4 is operated, the rotary shafts 7 are rotated and the air flaps 6 are rotated at the same time so that the air inlet passage 5 of the housing 3 can be opened and closed.
Meanwhile, in the active air flap apparatus according to the according to the related art, only an opening degree of the air flap is controlled according to a temperature of exterior air and a speed of a vehicle but parameters for controlling the opening degree are not classified, and in particular, because information of the driving road is not reflected, cooling performance, aerodynamic performance, and fuel ratio cannot be effectively improved.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.